“MLS BANS Pride Flags for FIFA Club World Cup 2025: ‘No More Woke Prides,’” claims a November 17, 2024 Facebook post with thousands of interactions.

Screenshot from Facebook taken November 26, 2024

The same claim has circulated elsewhere on Facebook, Threads and other websites — including in Spanish — but not all of the posts clearly mark the claim as “satire.”

FIFA officials announced the US would host an expanded 32-team Club World Cup from June 15 to July 13, 2025 (archived here). The United States will also host the 2026 World Cup, along with Mexico and Canada.

FIFA’s communications team told AFP that reports of a ban on Pride flags have “no validity” and have been spread by “a satirical site which clearly states at the bottom of the story that it is not true.”

A keyword search shows the site SpaceXMania posted an article about the supposed ban on November 15, but at the bottom of the page, it included a note saying: “This is SATIRE, It’s Not True.” The site also categorized the piece as “satire.”

Screenshot from the SpaceXMania website taken November 26, 2024 with elements highlighted by AFP

SpaceXMania posts are frequently reshared on social media without the satire disclosure.

Past controversy

Pride flags and rainbow attire became an issue during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Several federations sought to wear rainbow “One Love” armbands in protest against the country’s policies toward LGBTQ people, but dropped the plan under pressure from FIFA. 

FIFA’s media website does not include any announcements restricting the use of Pride flags at upcoming events (archived here).

The Club World Cup matches will take place in 12 MLS stadiums. Some have policies explicitly permitting spectators to bring flags to matches, including MetLife Stadium in New Jersey and Audi Field in Washington (archived here and here), while others, including the Rose Bowl in Los Angeles prohibit all banners, signs and flags (archived here).

The MLS has previously banned flags and banners referencing the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but not Pride symbols.

A spokesperson for MLS, which includes 29 clubs from the US and Canada, deferred questions about the posts to FIFA, but the league’s code of conduct explicitly prohibits discrimination based on “gender,” “gender identity” or “sexual orientation” at its facilities (archived here).

AFP has debunked multiple claims about FIFA here.

November 27, 2024 Paragraphs two and three were updated to add archive links.

The claim that Pride flags have been permanently prohibited at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is false. This misinformation originated from a satirical post, which some users mistakenly took seriously. FIFA has not announced any policy banning Pride flags for the event. In fact, FIFA’s stated policy supports inclusivity and human rights, including non-discrimination based on sexual orientation​

.The rumors seem to have been fueled by lingering tensions from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where restrictions on LGBTQ+ symbols caused controversy. However, as of now, FIFA has reaffirmed its commitment to upholding inclusivity at its events. The original satirical post has since been clarified as fiction​